Los Angeles Galaxy's David Beckham kicks from the corner during the first half of an MLS Western Conference finals soccer game against the Seattle Sounders, Sunday, Nov. 11, 2012, in Carson, Calif. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson)

Clearly, David Beckham had no grasp of the American sporting landscape. Just who was this guy who set out to transform a game that would seemingly forever be an afterthought?

As it turns out, it was the American sporting landscape that had no grasp of Beckham, or just what made him a formidable presence wherever he went, let alone one who had earned acclaim as a world icon. | » Nick Green on Beckham's MLS legacy

After Saturday, Beckham will ultimately escape the clutches of Major League Soccer, but at that point, the 16-year-old professional league and its teams will have to understand that they were actually caught in his clutches.

On Saturday, Beckham will try to help the Los Angeles Galaxy capture their second consecutive MLS Cup championship, then walk away as a player in a league no real soccer fan would be caught red-handed following when it was formed. | 100% SOCCER BLOG

They're paying attention now. And as polarizing as a world icon can sometimes be, even critics won't be able to deny that soccer in America has been boosted beyond what many thought was attainable.

Beckham said he wanted to promote the sport and the league in this country. And he backed it up. | PHOTOS

"When he first came here, he said he was not coming here to retire," said Don Garber, the MLS commissioner. "He was coming here to be part of a team and work hard and win some championships and very importantly, he was coming here to grow the sport of soccer in America, to make MLS more popular here and abroad.

Soccer player David Beckham, center, laughs as his son Romeo, right, cheers while his other son Cruz looks on as they watch the Los Angeles Lakers play the Phoenix Suns in their NBA basketball game, Friday, Nov. 16, 2012, in Los Angeles. The Lakers won 114-102. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

"I don't think anybody would doubt he hasn't over-delivered by every one of those measures. There's arguably not a soccer fan on this planet that doesn't know the L.A. Galaxy and Major League Soccer, and David played a significant role in helping us make that happen."

Beckham might have been the prettiest player of all time, but he was never considered the best of all time when he arrived from Spanish power Real Madrid in 2007. At most, some said, he was a gimmick, a slick profiteer with an exotic English accent more interested in settling in Hollywood so his wife's show-biz career would be the focal point of the move.

Early on, he openly feuded with Landon Donovan, the club's incumbent captain.

When he went on loan to AS Milan, he returned to jeers from Galaxy fans who believed they had been hoodwinked. When he tore his Achilles' tendon, it was obvious to some that he was too old for this game.

Beneath it all, Beckham was quietly building his legacy. Few saw the work he fiercely put in to see his dreams of building his sport in a country he knew would be slow to accept it.

Quietly, his work began adding up. His team grew into a champion around him, and around the team, Beckham was growing future champions.

His six-year MLS playing legacy will be cemented, win or lose against Houston on Saturday at Home Depot Center. The most interesting aspect of Beckham's overall legacy, however, won't be able to be measured for years.

"If you look at David and his time here, his influence has spanned everything that our league touches, from commercially what our league looks like, to ticket sales, to soccer-specific stadiums, to designated players being more interested in our league," said Klein, a former Beckham teammate and now Galaxy vice president and senior director of the L.A. Galaxy Academy.

"I don't know that it can all be attributed to him, but I don't think you can deny that he's had an influence over this. When he came, we didn't have MLS academies, and now everyone has them and they're thriving."

The academies pull in the young players from the regions represented by the 19 franchises - there were 12 when Beckham arrived - and even one of his sons, Brooklyn, has participated.

David Beckham of the Los Angeles Galaxy heads for the dressing room following the friendly match between the Newcastle Jets and the LA Galaxy at EnergyAustralia Stadium on Nov. 27, 2010 in Newcastle, Australia.
(Brendon Thorne/Getty Images)

Beckham became a designated player - one whose salary, in effect, would not count against the league-imposed salary cap for each club - but he was also a hands-on youth development coordinator.

His long-term goal became for MLS to not have to turn to outside the country for designated star players, but to grow them at home.

"What if that player came from the South Bay or downtown L.A.?" Klein said. "Our demographics here point to that. I believe that we can develop the next Chicharito (Mexican star Javier Hernandez) and he can come from our system. And be a part of our team since he was 10, and love the Galaxy."

Beckham, of course, has that disarming smile and while he sets his limits with his public appearances, he has his own way of getting his point across.

If you've been in the Galaxy Academy like hundreds of kids, you'll find out fast. Just like 19-year-old Jose Villarreal, a kid from Inglewood, did.

"I remember getting a call from David saying, `Who is this kid? He doesn't get it,' and David specifically sat and talked with him," Klein said. "Jose's not perfect, but now he looks like a professional kid. He's still so young but the influence of David going to him to say, `This is not how it's done here' - how are you going to say no to him?"

Villarreal is now a full-fledged member of the Galaxy, and scored a spectacular goal for the club on July 18 in Vancouver.

On the day Beckham met the media to explain why he was ending his playing days with MLS, it was Donovan lauding Beckham for helping him grow as a person, not just as a soccer player.

Impacting a teen-ager, helping form an attitude adjustment for America's greatest soccer player? That's a legacy. It's just not all of it.

"Whatever team team I played with in my career, wherever I've been, there's always been expectations," Beckham said. "Whether I've reached those expectations in people's eyes, that's for other people to decide, what my impact has been on this league over the past six years.

"I just want people to have enjoyed watching me play here and watching me work here, and that's what I want people to remember me for - my hard work and my success with the club."

Beckham has captured the moment, but to him, he has simply set the stage.

In this Nov. 18, 2012, file photo, Los Angeles Galaxy's David Beckham appears on the pitch before their MLS Western Conference championship soccer match against the Seattle Sounders in Seattle. Beckham and the Galaxy announced Monday that he will play his final match for the club in the MLS Cup next month. Los Angeles is scheduled to face Houston for the MLS title on Dec. 1. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren, File)